Sampling system



N. W. KIRCHER SAMPLING SYSTEM Nov. 14, 1961 Filed Dec. 23, 1957 FIG.

INVENTOR.

NEVIN W. KIRCHER Gwen (if/mind,

III, .1

ATTORNEYS United States Patent Ohio Filed Dec. 23, 1957, Ser. No. 704,521 1 Claim. (Cl. 73-421) This invention relates to a system for sampling liquids in bulk containers, such as tanks, and has for a primary object the provision of such a system particularly suited for the sampling of heavy liquids, such as molten asphalt, which must or desirably should be kept hot in the container.

The sampling of hot asphalt products, in particular, with conventional apparatus has been troublesome and tedious, since the available systems require appreciable circulation of the product externally of the tank. The asphalt is cooled upon such withdrawal from the tank and invariably there is some setting of the product in the connection piping of the sampler reducing the flow and leading to plugging of the pipe. An attempt to solve this problem was made by connecting a source of air under pressure to the system to force the return of the product to the tank and, in another modification, steam was injected for the same purpose. Both these expedients failed, such altered samplers also becoming quickly plugged.

Accordingly, the principal object of my invention as above-stated will be understood to mean elimination of these diificulties to make the sampling of heavy liquids such as molten asphalt, convenient and efiicient.

Another object of the invention is to provide tank sampling apparatus which will assure an accurately representative sample of the stored liquid.

It is also an object to provide such a system operative to provide a sample taken from an intermediate point within the tank, that is spaced significantly inwardly from the side wall and above the bottom of the tank without, however, requiring the use of any propulsion means or elaborate construction.

Briefly, my invention comprises a sampling line extending from a predetermined inner region of the tank downwardly to the side wall thereof, control valve means in such line, and means whereby such valve means can conveniently be actuated at the exterior of the tank. The sample is drawn at the point of emergence of the line and it will thus be seen that external circulation of the product is eliminated, with the valve and flow line for the sample being immersed in the body of the liquid in the tank and thereby heated to preserve fluidity of the sample.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent as the following description proceeds.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, the invention, then, comprises the features hereinafter fully described and particularly pointed out in the claims, the following description and the annexed drawing setting forth in detail certain illustrative embodiments of the invention, these being indicative, however, of but a few of the various ways in which the principle of the invention may be employed.

In said annexed drawing:

FIG. 1 is a vertical, fragmented section of a tank equipped with sampling means in accordance with the present invention; and

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal section of such sampler on an enlarged scale.

Referring now to the drawing in detail, reference numeral 1 designates generally a liquid storage tank having 2 a shell or side wall 2 and a bottom 3, with the liquid therewithin indicated by the lines 4.

A circular opening is provided in the shell 2 at a predetermined elevation above the bottom wall and a pipe section 5 having a rounded weld head 6 closing one end is inserted in this wall opening with its other, open end 7 substantially at the wall. Such outer end of the pipe section is welded to the wall about the opening, as indicated at 8.

Extending centrally through the head 6 there is a valve bonnet 9, preferably welded therein before the head is welded to the pipe section, and a valve 10 is connected at the end of the bonnet exteriorly of the head. Such valve has an operating stem 11 extending through the bonnet, a packing nut 12 being provided, and a hand wheel 13 is secured to the stem in the section 5 and thereby accessible from outside the tank. In this embodiment, it is contemplated that the liquid within the tank will be kept hot, with any appropriate heating means provided and operative in conventional manner, and accordingly a layer of heat insulating material 14 is applied, e.g. by adhesive, to the inner surface of the chamber formed by the pipe section and head.

The valve 10 is arranged vertically and is open at the top or inlet for entry of the liquid as indicated by the arrow. A curved pipe 15 is connected to the other side or outlet of the valve, at the bottom, and extends downwardly and outwardly to a coupling 16 welded in the wall 2 below the pipe section 5. An emergency valve 17 is connected substantially directly to the coupling 16, externally of the tank, and there is a very short pipe length 18 attached to the other side of this valve. Valve 17 is normally open, with the hand wheel therefor (shown in phantom) removed to ensure that the valve is operated only when intended. It will be clear that the emergency valve 17 permits the sampling line 15 to be closed in the event of failure of valve 10 or any other part of the internal system.

For convenient actuation of the control valve 10, the same of course having a valving member operable to open and close the valve passage, a removable extension handle 19 is provided of such length as to extend from the hand wheel 13 beyond the outer open end of the pipe section 5. Such extension handle may be of any suitable design to engage the hand wheel 13 and in the drawing I have shown the same as having an end piece 20 formed with lugs which fit in the spaces between the spokes of the wheel.

It will thus be seen that opening of the control valve 10, conveniently by means of the extension handle, admits a sample to the line 15 and such sample flows by gravity to the discharge point at the exterior of the tank where it may be collected in desired manner. The inward spacing of the valve is suiticient to provide a fresh sample; in one installation, the over-all length of the section and head is approximately one foot. When the valve 10 is closed, the product standing in the line 15 will of course drain.

It will also be obvious that the immersion of the sampler as described and shown maintains the same heated and thereby does away with any problem of cooling the flow substantially right up to the point where the sample is collected. Furthermore, the external projection, i.e., the distance from the coupling 16 to the end of the pipe 18, is kept as short as possible, and there is sufficient conduction of heat from the interior line to keep this small projection warm.

This new sampling system is of course universal in nature, since it is clearly usable with light liquids, if desired, as well as in the handling of such material as molten asphalt and the like.

Other modes of applying the principle of the invention f ployed.

.- -I therefore, particularly point out and distinctly claim as my invention:

In combination with a liquid hulk container, an elon gated housing having a wall closing one end and being Open at the other, said housing being supported in sealed relation in an opening provided therefor in the'side wall of the container at an appreciable spacing above the bottom of the latter, with the thus supported housing having its open end outermost adjacent the container wall and extending generally horizontally inwardly, whereby the housing forms a sealed recess in the container wal1, control valve means secured to the inner end wall of the housing with its body sealed in an opening therein and projecting exteriorly therefrom to position the inlet and outlet ports of the valve means outside the housing and thus within the interior of the container, said control valve means having an actuator which extends through the bodyportion thereof sealed in the end of the housing to the'interior of the housing where it terminatesin haudle means accessible through the exposed and open outer I end of the housing for actuating the control valve means,

a conduit connected to the outlet port of said valve means extending downwardly and outwardly to pass through a further opening in the container wall below the housing, the conduit being sealed at its emergence from the container, and .further valve means in the conduit external to but closely adjacent the wall of the container, the inlet port of the control valve means communicating with the interior of the'container for admittance of liquid and, when said control valve means is open, flow through the same and the connected conduit to they exterior of the container, whereby a sample of liquid from an inner region of the container can be extracted by manipulation of said control and further valve means.

McCauley Jan. 23, 1923 Qsbourn n -c i e,- 7, 9 9 

